Today marked the opening of the 7th European Economic Congress, the largest business event in Central Europe. The opening speech of the Congress was delivered by President Bronisław Komorowski. The event will continue until Wednesday, April 22nd.

On April 21st from 11.30am to 1.00pm, LOTOS and Central Europe Energy Partners (CEEP) will hold a joint panel entitled 'Completing Europe – From the North-South Corridor to Energy, Transportation, and Telecommunications Union'.

The panel, whose title is borrowed from last year's report by CEEP and Atlantic Council, will be attended by Paweł Olechnowicz, President of the Grupa LOTOS Management Board and Chair of the CEEP Board of Directors; Jerzy Buzek, Chair of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy of the European Parliament; Dominique Ristori, Director General for Energy at the European Commission; Marek Woszczyk, President of the PGE Management Board, and Jan Chadam, President of the Management Board of Gaz-System.

The report points to key risks related to inadequate infrastructural integration of the European Union, with prices of commodities and energy among the most important risks. Natural gas prices in Central Europe are much higher than in Western Europe, where the market is more integrated, and therefore liquid and diversified. Integration fosters natural competition, while its absence forces consumers to rely on a single supplier. Strategic security of the energy sector is equally important. Only a closely integrated EU with a single energy market can secure energy supply stability throughout the Community. The integration of infrastructural and energy systems of EU member states will facilitate quick response times if the supply of commodities and energy to a given country or region is interrupted.

For more information, see http://www.ceep.be.

The European Economic Congress is a three-day series of meetings and debates that brings together thousands of guests from around Poland and Europe. Nearly 110 sessions are led by several hundred speakers. Each year, the guests of the European Economic Congress include EU commissioners, prime ministers of European countries, as well as representatives of Polish government. The subjects of the meetings and debates centre on the most important questions of the social and economic development of Europe.

Communications Office, Grupa LOTOS S.A., ul. Elbląska 135, 80-718 Gdańsk, Poland, tel. (+48) 58 308 87 31, (+48) 58 308 83 88, (+48) 58 308 83 55, e-mail: media@grupalotos.pl